Milovan Djilas Nova Klasapdf ((install))
In the story of his disillusionment, Đilas coined the term that would make him famous:
Đilas explains that the "New Class" is formed primarily from the top echelon of the communist party—the party hierarchy, the political apparatus, and the security forces (secret police). Privileges and Power
The central argument of Djilas’s work is that the Bolshevik Revolution did not result in a "classless society" as Marx had predicted. Instead, it birthed a —the Communist Party bureaucracy.
Đilas grew up believing in the Marxist promise: that the Revolution would sweep away the old inequalities. The aristocracy and the capitalists would be vanquished. In their place, a "dictatorship of the proletariat" would create a classless society where everyone worked for the common good. milovan djilas nova klasapdf
Method and style
), is a critical exploration of how communist regimes inevitably create a new, privileged ruling elite. Written while Djilas was a political prisoner in Yugoslavia, the book argues that the "classless society" promised by Marxism was replaced by a system of bureaucratic totalitarianism. Prefeitura de Aracaju Core Content and Main Thesis
The manuscript can be accessed through several academic and archival repositories: SUMMARY OF THE NEW CLASS - by Milovan Djilas - CIA In the story of his disillusionment, Đilas coined
While this class does not "own" property in a traditional capitalist sense, it exercises collective ownership by controlling the state apparatus and the means of production. Exploitation:
Djilas argued that the communist party bureaucracy—the Apparat or Nomenklatura —had collective ownership over the entire nation's wealth. While individual bureaucrats could not legally inherit factories, they collectively controlled, managed, and distributed national property. This gave them greater economic power than any traditional capitalist class. Key Characteristics of the New Class:
The book is frequently assigned in university courses covering Cold War history, political sociology, Soviet-era studies, and totalitarianism. Đilas grew up believing in the Marxist promise:
The publication history of The New Class is almost as dramatic as its content. Because the manuscript was written during Djilas’ imprisonment, the first edition was published in the United States and the United Kingdom in 1957, bypassing state censorship in Yugoslavia. For decades, the book was banned in communist nations, though it circulated widely among dissidents.
He argued that while the system claimed to be a dictatorship of the proletariat, it was actually a dictatorship of the Party bureaucracy. This new class—the party officials, the managers, the police chiefs—derived its power not from capital, but from "collective ownership."
Djilas argued that the New Class is more parasitic and totalizing than any previous ruling class in history. Because it controls both the economy and the state apparatus, it cannot tolerate any independent thought or private initiative. Any challenge to the economic system is treated as a challenge to the state itself, leading to a permanent state of repression. The Paradox of the "Heroic" Revolutionary